Rickenbacker

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Rickenbacker International Corporation

Type	Private
Industry	Musical instruments
Founded	1931
Founder	Adolph Rickenbacher and George Beauchamp
Headquarters	3895 South Main Street, Santa Ana, California, US
Area served	Global
Key people	Adolph Rickenbacher, George Beauchamp
Products	Lap and Console steel guitars Guitars Bass guitars Electric mandolins Electric banjos Amplifiers
Website	Rickenbacker.com

Rickenbacker 330JG

Rickenbacker International Corporation is an electric string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. In 1932, the company became the world's first to produce electric guitars and eventually produced a range of electric guitars and bass guitars.^[1]

Founding[edit]

Sketch of Rickenbacker "frying pan" lap steel guitar from 1934 patent application

The company was founded in 1931 as the Ro-Pat-In Corporation (ElectRo-Patent-Instruments) by Adolph Rickenbacher and George Beauchamp in order to sell electric Hawaiian guitars. These instruments had been designed by Beauchamp, assisted at the National String Instrument Corporation by Paul Barth and Harry Watson.^[1] They chose the brand name Rickenbacher (later changed to Rickenbacker), though early examples bear the brand name Electro.^[2]

Nicknamed "fry-pans" because of their long necks and circular bodies, the instruments were the first solid-bodied electric guitars, though they were a lap-steel type. They had a single pickup with a steel cover that arched over the strings. By the time production ceased in 1939, several thousand "fry-pans" had been produced.

Electro String also sold amplifiers to go with their electric guitars. A Los Angeles radio manufacturer named Van Nest designed the first Electro String production-model amplifier. Shortly thereafter, design engineer Ralph Robertson further developed the amplifiers, and by the 1940s at least four different Rickenbacker models were made available. James B. Lansing of the Lansing Manufacturing Company designed the speaker in the Rickenbacker professional model. During the early 1940s, Rickenbacker amps were sometimes repaired by Leo Fender, whose repair shop evolved into the Fender Electric Instrument Manufacturing Company.

Early history[edit]

George Beauchamp was a vaudeville performer, violinist, and steel guitarist who, like most of his fellow acoustic guitarists in the pre-electric-guitar days of the 1920s, was searching for a way to make his instrument cut through an orchestra. He first conceived of a guitar fitted with a phonograph-like amplifying horn, and approached inventor and violin-maker John Dopyera to create a prototype which proved to be, by all accounts, a failure. Their next collaboration involved experiments with mounting three conical-shaped aluminum resonators into the body of the guitar beneath the bridge. These efforts produced an instrument which so pleased Beauchamp that he told Dopyera that they should go into business to manufacture them. After further refinements, Dopyera applied for a patent on the so-called tri-cone guitar on April 9, 1927. Thereafter, Dopyera and his brothers began to make the tri-cone guitars in their Los Angeles shop, calling the new guitars "Nationals". On January 26, 1928, the National String Instrument Corporation was certified and, with its new factory located near a metal-stamping shop owned by Adolph Rickenbacher and staffed by some of the most experienced and competent craftsmen available, began to produce Spanish and Hawaiian style tri-cone guitars as well as four-string tenor guitars, mandolins and ukuleles.^[3]

Adolph Rickenbacher was born in Basel, Switzerland in 1887 and emigrated to the United States to live with relatives after the death of his parents. Sometime after moving to Los Angeles in 1918, he changed his surname to "Rickenbacker". In 1925, Rickenbacker and two partners formed the Rickenbacker Manufacturing Company and incorporated it in 1927. By the time he met George Beauchamp and began manufacturing metal bodies for the "Nationals" being produced by the National String Instruments Corporation, Rickenbacker was a highly skilled production engineer and machinist. Adolph became a shareholder in National and, with the assistance of his Rickenbacker Manufacturing Company, National was able to boost production to fifty guitars a day.^[4]

Unfortunately, National's line of instruments was not well diversified and, as demand for the expensive and hard-to-manufacture tri-cone guitars began to slip, the company realized that it would need to produce instruments with a lower production cost if it was going to succeed against rival manufacturers. Dissatisfaction with what John Dopyera felt was mismanagement led him to resign from National in January 1929, and he subsequently formed the Dobro Manufacturing Corporation, later called Dobro Corporation, Ltd, and began to manufacture his own line of resonator-equipped instruments (dobros). Patent infringement disagreements between National and Dobro led to a lawsuit in 1929 with Dobro suing National for $2 million in damages. Problems within National's management as well as pressure from the deepening Great Depression led to a production slowdown at National. This ultimately resulted in part of the company's fractured management structure organizing support for George Beauchamp's newest project: the development of a fully electric guitar.^[5]

By the late twenties, the idea for electrified string instruments had been around for some time, and experimental banjo, violin and guitar pickups had been developed. George Beauchamp had himself been experimenting with electric amplification as early as 1925, but his early efforts involving microphones did not produce the effects he desired. Along the way Beauchamp also built a one-string test guitar made out of a 2X4 piece of lumber and an electric phonograph pickup. As the problems at National became more apparent, Beauchamp's home experiments took on a more rigorous shape, and he began to attend night classes in electronics as well as collaborating with fellow National employee Paul Barth.^[1] When the prototype electric pickup they were developing finally worked to his satisfaction, Beauchamp asked former National shop craftsman Harry Watson to make a wooden neck and body to which the electronics could be attached. It was nicknamed the "fry-pan" because of its shape, though Rickenbacker liked to call it the pancake.^[6] The final design Beauchamp and Barth developed was an electric pickup consisting of a pair of horseshoe-shaped magnets that enclosed the pickup coil and completely surrounded the strings.^[1]

Fry-pan & Electro-Spanish:

At the end of 1931, Beauchamp, Barth, Rickenbacker and with several other individuals banded together and formed the Ro-Pat-In Corporation (elektRO-PATent-INstruments) in order to manufacture and distribute electrically amplified musical instruments, with an emphasis upon their newly developed A-25 Hawaiian Guitar, often referred to as the "fry-pan" lap-steel electric guitar as well as an Electric Spanish (standard) model and companion amplifiers. In the summer of 1932, Ro-Pat-In began to manufacture cast aluminum production versions of the Fry-Pan as well as a lesser number of standard Spanish Electrics also known as "Electro-Spanish" models, built from wooden bodies similar to those made in Chicago for the National Company. These instruments constitute the origin of the electric guitar by virtue of their string-driven electro-magnetic pick-ups. In 1933 the Ro-Pat-In company's name was changed to Electro String Instrument Corporation and its instruments labeled simply as "Electro". In 1934 the name of Rickenbacher" was added in honor of the company's principal partner, Adolph Rickenbacker.^[7][8]

During the early production of the A-22 Fry-Pan, Beauchamp and Rickenbacher would experiment with wooden-bodied Spanish guitars and solid body prototypes; ultimately giving birth to the Electro-Spanish Model B and the Electro-Spanish Ken Roberts. Both models had been experimental, produced as early as 1931 and officially released in 1935. The Electro-Spanish Ken Roberts model was subject to a limited production of forty-six. There were several new design elements found on the Electro-Spanish Ken Roberts. The instrument was the first of its kind to be named for an endorser. While most arch-top guitars had 14-fret neck joints, the Electro-Spanish Ken Roberts fingerboard joined the body at the 17th fret allowing much greater access to the higher frets, creating a full 25-1/2" inch scale. This addition made the Electro-Spanish Ken Roberts the first production full scale (25-1/2") electrified guitar.^[7][8]

Another new feature on the Electro-Spanish Ken Roberts is the stock Kauffman Vib-rola tailpiece, the world's first patented tremolo (US Patent: US2241911A). The Ken Roberts is the first instrument of any type to feature a hand-operated vibrato as standard equipment. It also marks Rickenbacker's first link to the unit's originator, Clayton Doc Kauffman, who would become a design collaborator for the company a couple of years later.^[7][8]

Model B Electric:

In 1935, the company introduced several new models including the Model "B" Electric Spanish guitar which is the first solid body electric guitar. Because the original aluminum Fry-Pans were susceptible to tuning problems from the expansion of the metal under hot performing lights, many of the new models were manufactured from cast Bakelite, an early synthetic plastic from which bowling balls were made.^[2]

Rickenbacker continued to specialize in steel guitars well into the 1950s, but with the rock and roll boom they shifted towards producing standard guitars, both acoustic and electric. In 1956, Rickenbacker introduced two instruments with the "neck through body" construction that was to become a standard feature of many of the company's products, including the Combo 400 guitar, the model 4000 bass, and, later, the 600 series. Neck Thru consists of a single wooden piece from the neck through the central body section.

In 1958, Rickenbacker introduced its "Capri" series, including the double-cutaway semi-acoustic guitars which would become the famous Rickenbacker 300 Series.

In 1963, Rickenbacker developed an electric twelve-string guitar with an innovative headstock design that enabled all twelve machine heads to be fitted onto a standard-length headstock by alternately mounting pairs of machine heads at right-angles to the other.

Rickenbacker guitars and 1960s rock and roll[edit]

Body of a 370/12, with the distinctive R-tailpiece, sharkfin inlays and stereo jacks.

During the 1960s, Rickenbacker benefited tremendously when a couple of Rickenbacker guitar models became permanently intertwined with the sound and look of The Beatles.

In Hamburg in 1960, Beatles guitarist John Lennon bought a Rickenbacker 325 Capri, which he used throughout the early days of The Beatles. He eventually had the guitar's natural alder body refinished in black, and made other modifications including the fitting of a Bigsby vibrato tailpiece and regularly changing the control knobs.^[9] Lennon played this guitar for the Beatles' famous 1964 debut on The Ed Sullivan Show (as well as for their third Sullivan appearance, pre-taped the same day but broadcast two weeks later). During Lennon's post-Beatles years in New York, this guitar was restored to its original natural wood finish and the cracked gold pickguard replaced with a white one.^[9]

Two new 325s were created for Lennon and were shipped to him while the Beatles were in Miami Beach, Florida, on the same 1964 visit to the United States: a one-off custom 12-string 325 model and an updated six-string model with modified electronics and vibrato. He used this newer six-string model on the Beatles' sequentially "second" appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.^[9]

Lennon accidentally dropped the second 325 model during a 1964 Christmas show, breaking the headstock. While it was being repaired, Rickenbacker's UK distributor Rose Morris gave Lennon a model 1996 (the export version of a 325, available exclusively in a red finish and with an F-hole). Lennon later gave the 1996 to fellow Beatle Ringo Starr.^[9]

The typical 12-string headstock, with the slotted tuners for the octave strings.

Beatles guitarist George Harrison bought a 425 during a brief visit to the United States in 1963.^[9] In February 1964, while in New York City, F.C. Hall of Rickenbacker met with the band and their manager, and gave Harrison a model 360/12 (the second electric twelve-string built by Rickenbacker).^[9] This instrument became a key part of the Beatles' sound on their LP A Hard Day's Night and other Beatles songs through late 1964. Harrison played this guitar sporadically throughout the remainder of his life.

On August 21, 1965, during a Beatles concert tour, Randy Resnick of B-Sharp, a Minnesota music store, presented Harrison with a second model 360/12 FG "New Style" 12-string electric guitar, distinguishable from Harrison's first 12-string by its rounded cutaways and edges. There was a television documentary produced by KSTP TV in Minneapolis documenting this event.

Harrison used this guitar on the song "If I Needed Someone" and during the Beatles' 1966 tours.^[9] This 12-string's whereabouts are unknown, as it was stolen at some point after the band ceased touring.^[9]

After the Beatles 1965 summer tour, Paul McCartney frequently used a left-handed 1964 4001S FG Rickenbacker bass, as its tone was better suited to recording than the lightweight Höfner basses he had used previously. The instrument became popular with other bassists influenced by his highly melodic style, as it produces a clear tone even when played high up the neck, its deep cutaways allowing easy access to the higher frets.

In 1967, McCartney gave his 4001 a psychedelic paint job, as seen in the promo film for "Hello Goodbye", and in the Magical Mystery Tour film.^[9] A year or so later the finish was sanded off; a second over-zealous sanding in the early 1970s removed the "points" of the bass' cutaways. McCartney predominantly used the Rickenbacker bass during his time with Wings, until the late 1970s.

Partly because of the Beatles' popularity and their consistent use of the brand, Rickenbackers were quickly adopted by many other 1960s notables.

As both the British invasion and the 1960s came to an end, Rickenbacker guitars fell somewhat out of fashion; however Rickenbacker basses remained highly in favor through the 1970s and on. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Rickenbacker guitars experienced a renaissance as many new wave and jangle pop groups began to use them.

Rickenbacker guitars and basses continue to be very popular to this day with demand persistently exceeding new factory supply.^{[citation needed]} Demand is particularly high amongst retro groups who have been influenced by the sound and look of the 1960s.

Hallmarks of Rickenbackers[edit]

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Double truss rod neck

Many Rickenbackers—both guitars and basses—are equipped to be compatible with a "Rick-O-Sound" unit via an extra "stereo" output socket that allows the two pickups (or neck and middle pickup combined/bridge pickup, in the case of three pickup instruments) to be connected to different effects units or amplifiers. Another idiosyncrasy of Rickenbackers is the use of two truss rods (rather than the usual one) to correct twists, as well as curvature, in the neck. Rickenbacker guitars typically have a set neck made of multiple pieces of wood, laminated together lengthwise, while their basses have a one-piece neck that extends through the entire body. Rickenbacker instruments are known for having narrower necks (41.4 mm versus 43 mm at the nut for most competitors) and lacquered rosewood fingerboards, giving them a very different "feel".

Known for their distinctive jangle and chime, Rickenbacker guitars tended to be favoured by jangle pop, power pop and British Invasion–style groups - bands such as The Who, The Byrds and The Beatles. The early Rickenbackers that made this sound famous were equipped with lower-output "Toaster" pickups. These pickups were phased out circa 1969–70 for newer "Hi-Gain" pickups, which had twice the output of their illustrious predecessors. This change was almost certainly due to the trend toward the louder "rock" sounds of the 1970s, despite the earlier models being credited by Pete Townshend as being key to the development of "the Marshall sound" and his refinement of electric guitar feedback techniques.^[10]

In more recent years, a diverse cross-section of artists have started to favour Rickenbacker guitars. In 1979, Tom Petty and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers would adopt the Rickenbacker 12-string "toaster" jangle into their records and still use the vintage 1960s models. The post-1960s "Hi-gain" pickup-equipped guitars are associated with The Jam and R.E.M. The "Hi-gain" pickups are well suited to harder spiky pop/rock sounds as well as the classic clean chime.

In 2014, Rickenbacker introduced the "Walnut series" line of guitars: the 330W, 330W/12, 360W, 360W/12, and 4003W. These models possess walnut bodies with a hand-rubbed oil finish, and unfinished maple fingerboards.^[11]

Basses[edit]

Rickenbacker 4001JG

The 4000 series were the first Rickenbacker bass guitars, production beginning in 1957. The 4000 was followed by the very popular 4001 (in 1961), the 4002 (limited edition bass introduced in 1977), the 4008 (an eight-string model introduced in the mid-1970s), the 4003 (in 1979, replacing the 4001 entirely in 1986 and still in production in 2017), and most recently the 4004 series. There was also the 4005, a hollow-bodied bass guitar (discontinued in 1984); it did not resemble any of the other 4000 series basses, but rather the new style 360-370 guitars. The 4001S (introduced 1964) was basically a 4001 but with no binding and dot fingerboard inlays. It was exported to England as the RM1999. However, Paul McCartney received one of the early 4001S instruments (his unit was left-handed, and later modified to include a "zero fret").

Standard versions and collectable versions of the 4003 have included the 4003s (special)(discontinued 1995, relaunched 2015) a 4003 similar to the 4001s with dot neck markers, no body binding based loosely upon the original Rickenbacker basses and fitted with 4001 pick ups. 1985–2002 versions of 4003 and 4003s were available with black hardware option and black binding. Other later special editions have included 4003 Blue Boy, 4003 CS (Chris Squire) similar to 4001 CS Limited edition specials include the Blackstar, the Shadow Bass, the Tuxedo and 4003 Redneck.

Rickenbacker basses have a distinctive tone. The 4001 and 4003 basses have neck-through construction for more solid sustain due to more rigidity. The sustain at the bottom end is particularly striking, and by routing the two outputs from the stereo "Rick-O-Sound" output, the brighter bridge pick up through a guitar rig and the bassier neck pickup through a bass setup, a particularly distinctive bass sound is produced. British bassist Chris Squire of Yes was one of the first musicians to 'supercharge' the classic 4001 sound by splitting the output of his bass - he had his monophonic 4001 rewired to allow him to split the signal, sending the bass (neck) pickup output to a regular bass amplifier, and the treble (bridge) signal to a lead guitar amplifier. The 3000 series made from the mid-1970s to mid-1980s were cheaper instruments with bolt-on 21 fret necks. There was also a set neck 4000 version in 1975 and 76 (neck set like a Gibson Les Paul) which had a 20-fret neck, dot inlays, no binding (similar to the 4001S) but only a single bridge position mono pickup. Fred Turner of Bachman-Turner Overdrive employed the 4000 extensively on the Not Fragile album, even appearing on a promotional clip for "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet". It also appears on the inner gatefold sleeve of their "Four Wheel Drive" album.

Lemmy Kilmister playing his signature 4004LK

Along with McCartney's usage, some of the earliest Rickenbacker bass players were Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, John Entwistle of The Who, and Pete Quaife of The Kinks.

In the 1970s, Rickenbacker basses became staples of Progressive rock, exemplified by Chris Squire of Yes, with his grinding "concrete mixer" sound that Squire achieved by using his Rickenbacker bass with Rotosound round wound strings, and playing with a pick, and channelling the bass through two different amplifiers. With hard rock, the Rickenbacker bass was played by Deep Purple's Roger Glover. Geddy Lee of Rush also used the Rickenbacker basses on Rush's earlier material. The "Ricks" continued their popularity among the punk/new wave explosion of the late 1970s and early 1980s, being favoured by Bruce Foxton of The Jam, Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols), Paul Gray (The Damned, Eddie & the Hot Rods), Tony James (Generation X), Paul Simonon (The Clash), Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Michael Bradley (The Undertones) and Kira Roessler (Black Flag). Another notable bassist that was famous for use of a Rickenbacker 4001 was the late Cliff Burton, bassist for the influential heavy metal group Metallica. His bass guitar was a Rickenbacker 4001 (with heavily modified electronics) that was red with white hardware and trim, with triangle inlays on the fretboard. His first use of that bass was for live gigs during the group's "Kill 'Em All" era. Many bass players continue to play Rickenbackers. (See 'players section' below)

Among hard rockers, one of the best-known players of Rickenbacker basses was Motörhead vocalist/bassist Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister, for whom Rickenbacker produced a 60-bass run of "Lemmy Kilmister" signature basses; a 4004LK, fitted with three pickups, gold hardware, and elaborate wood carving in the shape of oak leaves.

Rickenbacker acoustic guitars[edit]

Rickenbacker has produced a number of uniquely designed and distinctively trimmed acoustic guitars. Although a small number of Rickenbacker acoustics were sold in the 1950s and were seen in the hands of stars like Ricky Nelson^[12] and Sam Cooke,^[13] the company concentrated on their electric guitar and western steel guitar business from the early 1960s onward. From about 1959 through 1994, very few Rickenbacker acoustic guitars were made.

In 1995, an effort was made to re-introduce Rickenbacker acoustics, with factory production beginning in their Santa Ana manufacturing facility in 1996. Four models of flat top acoustic Rickenbackers were depicted in factory literature (maple or rosewood back & sides, jumbo or dreadnaught shape). Each of these four models was also available in both six- and twelve-string configurations, yielding a range of eight distinct instruments.^[14] (The 760J "Jazzbo," an archtop model, was only built as a prototype, with three examples known to exist.) It is estimated that fewer than 500 Rickenbacker acoustic guitars were built before the factory shut down the acoustic department in mid-2006.

In late 2006, the license to build Rickenbacker acoustics was granted to Paul Wilczynski, a luthier with a workshop in San Francisco, California. He continued to offer all eight models of the Rickenbacker flat top guitar line, each instrument being built to order until his license expired, effective February 1, 2013.

Pickups[edit]

Rickenbacker manufactures three distinct pickups for their current standard models: Hi-Gain single coil, Vintage Toaster™ single coil, and Humbucking. All three pickup designs share the same footprint, allowing them to retrofit into most current or vintage models. The tone varies from one style to the next, partially because of the types of magnets used^[15] but also due to the amount of wire wound around the pickup's bobbin.

Most contemporary models come with single-coil Hi-Gain pickups as standard equipment. Many post-British invasion Rickenbacker players such as Peter Buck, Paul Weller, and Johnny Marr have used instruments with these pickups. Rickenbacker's HB1 humbucker/dual coil pickup has a similar tone to a Gibson mini-humbucker pickup, and comes standard on the Rickenbacker 650 C and 4004 basses. Vintage reissue models, and some signature models, come with Toaster™ Top pickups, which resemble a classic two-slotted chrome toaster. Despite their slightly lower output, "Toasters" produce a brighter, cleaner sound, and are generally seen as key to obtaining the true British Invasion guitar tone, as they were original equipment of the era.

In addition to the standard pickups, vintage reissue bass models are equipped with Horseshoe wrap-around style pickups, very similar to the pickups on the earliest Rickenbacker Frying Pan models.^[16]

Product list[edit]

Notable Rickenbacker players[edit]

• Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney)
• Chris Squire (Yes)
• Cliff Burton (Metallica)
• Cook Craig (King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard)
• Geddy Lee (Rush)
• George Harrison (The Beatles)
• Guy Picciotto (Fugazi)
• Carl Wilson (The Beach Boys)
• Glenn Frey (Eagles)
• Helmut Hattler
• Jenny Lee Lindberg (Warpaint)
• Jim Reeves
• Joe Walsh (Eagles)
• Joey Walker (King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard)
• John Kay (Steppenwolf)
• John Lennon (The Beatles)
• John McNally (The Searchers)
• Johnny Marr (The Smiths)
• Kenny Howes
• Kevin Parker (Tame Impala)
• Lemmy (Motörhead)
• Matthew Ashman (Adam and the Ants, Bow Wow Wow)
• Maurice Gibb (Bee Gees)
• Mike Mills (R.E.M.)
• Mike Rutherford (Genesis)
• Noel Gallagher (Oasis)
• Paul Kantner (Jefferson Airplane)
• Paul McCartney (The Beatles, Wings)
• Paul Weller (The Jam)
• Pete Townshend (The Who)
• Peter Buck (R.E.M.)
• Peter Theobalds (Akercocke)
• Roger McGuinn (The Byrds)
• Susanna Hoffs (The Bangles)
• The Edge (U2)
• Tom Petty (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)
• Toots Thielemans
• Zeta Bosio (Soda Stereo)

References[edit]

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rickenbacker.

• Rickenbacker International Corporation
• Rock On - 'Born To Rocks' opens, BBC Radio 6 Music website. (An article about a guitar exhibition, includes details on the Rickenbacker Frying pan.)
• Björn Ericksson's Rickbeat Reference Page
• Rickenbacker register and resource page
• Interview with John C. Hall NAMM Oral History Library (2003)
• Interview with Cindalee Hall NAMM Oral History Library (2017)

Coordinates: 33°41′43″N 117°52′04″W / 33.695250°N 117.867835°W / 33.695250; -117.867835